Protocol on Culture, Information and Sport
Posted on Thursday, June 5th, 2008 by tralac in Legal ResourcesProtocol on Culture, Information and Sport
WE, the Heads of State or Government of:
The Republic of Angola
The Republic of Botswana
The Democratic Republic of Congo
The Kingdom of Lesotho
The Republic of Malawi
The Republic of Mauritius
The Republic of Mozambique
The Republic of Namibia
The Republic of Seychelles
The Republic of South Africa
The Kingdom of Swaziland
The United Republic of Tanzania
The Republic of Zambia
The Republic of Zimbabwe
HAVING regard to Article 21 and 22 of the SADC Treaty which provide for the conclusion of such Protocols as may be necessary in each area of cooperation and which shall spell out the objectives and scope of, and the institutional mechanisms for, cooperation and integration;
CONVINCED that culture, information and sport play a vital and central role in the process of, and are therefore a sine qua non for, the integration and cooperation of the Member States constituting SADC;
GUIDED by the principle of involving the peoples of the Region as well as non-governmental organisations in the process of regional integration in the areas of cooperation in order to foster close relationships among communities, associations and people of the Region as provided by Article 23 of the Treaty;
FURTHER GUIDED by the policies, priorities and strategies of the Sector for Culture, Information and Sport of SADC;
FURTHER GUIDED by the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Cultural Charter for Africa; the Cultural Manifesto of Algiers (1969); the OAU Lagos Plan of Action for the Economic Development of Africa and the Final Act of Lagos (1980); Our Creative Diversity (1997); the UNESCO Stockholm Action Plan on Cultural Policies for Development and the OAU Dakar Plan of Action on Cultural Industries;
MINDFUL of the objective to strengthen and consolidate the historical, social and cultural affinities and links among the peoples of the Region as stipulated in Article 5(1)(h) of the Treaty;
GUIDED by the Windhoek Declaration on the State of the Media in Southern Africa and the SADC Declaration on the Role of Information and Communication;
RECALLING that information is a prerequisite for political, economic, social and cultural development and therefore the need to cooperate in removing barriers for its dissemination;
DESIROUS of improving the availability of information to the peoples of the Region;
GUIDED by the Olympic Charter and the OAU and Supreme Council of Sport in Africa General Assembly Declaration on Sport;
AWARE that sport plays an important role in addressing social, economic and political problems and promotes a sense of pride and community integration;
FURTHER AWARE of the Region’s proven potential in sport and that human-centred development brought about by participation in sport and recreation is one of the most essential means of achieving the objectives of the Treaty;
CONVINCED of the need to entrench sport in the regional integration agenda;
AWARE that SADC recognises the presence and role of the Supreme Council for Sport in Africa Zone VI (SCSA Zone VI) and that SADC has made the SCSA Zone VI the implementing arm of all SADC sports programmes;
CONVINCED FURTHER that the Region’s community building efforts can be better achieved through well co-ordinated and harmonised approaches to sports development, participation and tournament programmes.
TAKING full cognisance of the imperative need to translate sectoral policies, priorities and strategies into practical effect;
HEREBY AGREE as follows:
CHAPTER ONE
Definitions And General Principles
1. In this Protocol terms and expressions defined in Article 1 of the SADC Treaty shall bear the same meaning unless the context otherwise requires.
2. In this Protocol, unless the context otherwise requires;
‘Accreditation’ means adoption by Member States of regionally and commonly accepted standards of registering or accrediting practitioners in the fields of culture, information and sport;
‘Athlete’ means a person engaged in a sport code as an amateur or professional;
‘Broadcasting’ means disseminating information through electronic media such as radio, television, film and any new information technologies;
‘Centre of Excellence’ means: (a) with respect to culture, a research institution within the Region designated as such by Member States under Article 4 of this Protocol, and(b) with respect to sport, and institution where outstanding athletes receive specialised coaching and use up-to-date facilities and equipment in preparation for top level competitions;
‘Centre of Specialisation’ means the institution within the Region designated as such by Member States for training and other related purposes under Articles 4 of this Protocol;
‘Centre of Talent Development’ means the institution referred to in Article 26 of this Protocol;
‘Committee of Ministers’ means the Committee of Ministers of Member States responsible for culture, information and sport respectively, established by the Council in accordance with Article 11 (2) (g) of the Treaty;
‘Communication’ means the process of relaying or imparting information;
‘Community Media’ means non-profit and community-based media which serve geographically founded community or any group of people or sector of the public having an ascertainable common interest;
‘Confederation’ means a grouping, or a union, or an alliance of sports organisations or sports associations of Member States, which operate with a constitution, approved and registered by the SCSA;
‘Cultural agents’ means persons working in the field of culture, including creators, performers, administrators and professionals associated with such cultural activities as audio-visual arts, visual arts, crafts, the performing arts, publishing, the cultural heritage and cultural tourism;
‘Cultural goods/products’ means goods or products created or produced by cultural agents, including creators, performers or other people working in the field of culture or associated with such cultural activities as the audio-visual arts, the visual arts, crafts, the performing arts, publishing, cultural heritage and cultural tourism;
‘Cultural industries’ means the production, whether for sale, consumption or enjoyment, of cultural products which seek to convey ideas, messages, symbols, information or moral or aesthetic values of a given people or society;
‘Culture’ means, as the totality of a people’s way of life, the whole complex of distinctive spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features that characterise a society or social group, and includes not only arts and letters, but also modes of life, the fundamental rights of the human being, value systems, traditions and beliefs;
‘Disability’ means lack of utilisation of a part or parts of one’s body;
‘Executive Secretary’ means the chief executive officer of SADC appointed under Article 10 (7) of the Treaty;
‘Federation’ means a grouping, or a union, or an alliance of sports clubs for a similar sports discipline registered with the sports council or its equivalent of Member States;
‘Gender’ means the socially and culturally constructed roles, privileges, responsibilities, power and influence, social relations, expectations and value of men and women, girls and boys;
‘Harmonisation’ means arrangements agreed upon, accepted and adopted by Member States for the purpose of policy formulation, training cultural agents, information workers, media practitioners and sports personnel;
‘Honours and awards’ means any recognition given to sports personnel or athletes for outstanding performance as provided in Article 30;
‘Independent media’ means media which are editorially independent of their owners, be they private, public or community based;
‘Indigenous language’ means a language indigenous or native to a Member State of the Region, which is not a language of a migrant or non-native social group;
‘Information’ means knowledge statistics, reports, dance and song recorded in various forms such as books, audio, video tapes and electronic digitisation;
‘Information department’ means any department of State and any other public office or institution exercising power or performing a function related to collecting and disseminating information;
‘Information infrastructure’ means facilities, including equipment, used in the process of information dissemination;
‘Information Sub-Sector’ means the media, media institutions and other institutions referred to in this Protocol;
‘Information Workers’ means people involved in collecting, collating and organising the dissemination of information;
‘IOC’ means the International Olympic Committee;
‘Journalist’ means a person involved in the collection and dissemination of news and information;
‘Media’ means all forms of communications such as the print media, broadcast media, film, video and new information technologies;
‘Media Freedom’ means an environment in which the media operate without restraint and in accordance with the law;
‘Media Independence’ means editorial independence, whereby editorial policy and decisions are made by the media without interference;
‘Media Policy’ means a general framework and guidelines adopted by Member States, which set out the basis for media diversity and development;
‘Media Practitioners’ means people involved in all forms of communications, such as the print media, broadcast media, film, video, and new information technologies;
‘Mother tongue’ means one’s first or primary language;
‘NGO’ means non-governmental organisation
‘OAU’ means the Organisation of African Unity established at Addis Ababa in 1963;
‘Official Language’ means a language selected, set aside and so prescribed in the national constitution or by administrative fiat for use in such public domains as education, proclamation and dispensation of laws and government business;
‘Pluralistic media’ means diversified media in terms of ownership, control and content;
‘Print Media’ means printed and published materials such as newspapers, periodicals and books;
‘Protocol’ means this Protocol and any amendment thereto;
‘Recreation’ means leisure activities in which, through casual or organised ways, individuals or groups of people voluntarily participate;
‘SACIS’ means Southern African Cultural Information System;
‘SCSA’ means the Supreme Council for Sport in Africa;
‘Sector Co-ordinating Unit’ means the body established in terms of Article 35 of this Protocol;
‘Sport’ means those activities which are often physical and are organised and regulated by internationally accepted rules;
‘Sports Academy’ means an institution for training sports personnel;
‘Sports Personnel’ means people involved in sports administration and management including experts in equipment, facilities maintenance, sports scientists and sports medicine specialists;
‘Stakeholder’ means any institution organisation or individual with a particular interest in culture, information and sport activities;
‘Standardisation’ means agreed common standards of human resources development with respect to training and certification in the sub-sectors of culture, information and sport;
‘State Party’ means a Member of SADC that ratifies or accedes to this Protocol;
‘Sub-Sector’ means either of the three sub-sectors, namely Culture, Information and Sport;
State Parties shall, in the spirit of regional integration and co-operation, be guided by the following general principles:
(a) Striving for the development and implementation of policies and programmes in the areas of culture, information and sport consistent with the principles contained in Article 4 of the Treaty;
(b) Pooling of resources by State Parties, such as expertise and infrastructural facilities, and their utilisation in the interest of regional integration and cooperation;
(c) Commitment to the enhancement of a regional identity in diversity in the areas of culture, information and sport;
(d) Commitment to the right of access to information and participation in cultural and sporting activities by all citizens.
ARTICLE 3
GENERAL AREAS OF CO-OPERATION
Member States undertake to collaborate in the following areas:
(a) policy harmonisation;
(b) training, capacity-building and research;
(c) resource mobilisation and utilisation;
(d) flow and exchange of information;
(e) regional interaction among stakeholders;
(f) gender equality and equity;
(g) persons with disabilities;
ARTICLE 4
POLICY HARMONISATION
1. State Parties undertake to review and formulate policies, strategies and programmes in the areas of culture, information and sport so as to provide a framework for practical action in each Member State as well as a basis for regional cooperation.
2. State Parties shall seek to harmonise their policies, strategies and programmes in these fields in the interest of regional integration.
ARTICLE 5
TRAINING, CAPACITY-BUILDING AND RESEARCH
1. State Parties shall cooperate in the research and training of cultural agents, media practitioners and sports personnel.
2. State Parties agree to identify, designate and establish from already existing institutions within the Region, Centres of Excellence or Specialisation which shall be utilised jointly for research and training and related purposes.
3. State Parties agree to strengthen research and training capacities in their countries and support regional collaborative research by allocating adequate resources to the relevant research and training institutions in the areas of culture, information and sport.
ARTICLE 6
RESOURCE MOBILISATION AND UTILISATION
1. State Parties shall mobilise and allocate resources for the implementation of programmes in the areas of culture, information and sport.
2. State Parties agree, where necessary, to establish and contribute to appropriate Funds for the respective areas.
3. Member States shall encourage the participation of the private sector in the respective areas.
ARTICLE 7
FLOW AND EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION
1. Member States commit themsel
es to the development of a regional information infrastructure to facilitate information exchange in the areas of culture, information and sport.
2. The Sub-Sector on Information will take the lead in the development of the infrastructure in collaboration with other relevant SADC institutions.
ARTICLE 8
REGIONAL INTERACTION AMONG STAKEHOLDERS
Member States shall facilitate and promote greater interaction and exchanges among cultural agents, media practitioners, athletes and sports personnel of the Region.
Member States shall cooperate in ensuring gender equality and equity in the areas of culture, information and sport in light of the SADC Declaration on Gender and Development.
ARTICLE 10
PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Member States agree to cooperate in formulating policies and designing programmes of action that will ensure full participation of persons with disabilities in the areas of culture, information and sport.
CHAPTER THREE
Specific Areas Of Co-Operation
In fulfilment of the principles of this Protocol, Member States agree to cooperate in the area of culture in order to attain the following objectives:
(a) Co-operation in the formulation and harmonisation of cultural policies of Member States;
(b) Creation of a socio-cultural environment within which regional integration ideals of SADC can be realised;
(c) Promotion of an attitude which takes culture into account in regional development programmes;
(d) Identification, promotion and co-ordination of projects in the cultural field, including experience and information exchange between diverse cultures;
(e) Ensuring that culture plays a significant role in the economic development of the Region and evaluation of all SADC projects and programmes for their cultural impact;
(f) Development and promotion of institutions of cultural heritage such as libraries, museums and archives in support of the broad and specific objectives of this Protocol;
(g) Promotion of the use of indigenous languages for the promotion of the cultural identity of the Region.
ARTICLE 12
LANGUAGE POLICY FORMULATION
1. Member States shall formulate and implement language policies that will aim at promoting indigenous languages for national socio-economic development, where such languages exist.
2. Member States shall institute and put into practical effect policy measures that will aim at encouraging the learning and wider use of the official languages of Member States and of the working languages of SADC.
3. Member States shall encourage and promote the use of indigenous languages as medium of instruction where such languages exist.
4. Member States shall collaborate in the development of augmentative and alternative communication systems for people with impediments that negate communication.
ARTICLE 13
PRESERVATION OF CULTURAL HERITAGE
Member States shall establish policy guidelines for the preservation and promotion of the Region’s cultural heritage in all its multi-farious facets formulated in close collaboration with relevant stakeholders, and shall seek to harmonise such guidelines in the interest of mutually beneficial integration of the Region.
ARTICLE 14
CULTURAL INDUSTRIES
1. Member States undertake to make cultural industries a major cornerstone of their national economies.
2. Member States shall take such measures as are necessary in order to nurture, protect and promote their infant cultural industries.
3. Member States shall adopt measures designed to promote eco-tourism as a means to support the development of cultural industries.
ARTICLE 15
ARTS AND CULTURE FESTIVALS
1. Member States shall organise and cause to organise arts and cultural festivals to pursue the ideals of regional integration.
2. Member States shall take such policy measures as are necessary to attract private sector investment in festivals as well as facilitate their commercialisation in order to ensure their viability and sustainability.
3. Member States shall organise joint staging during international festivals of arts and culture.
4. Member States shall collaborate in providing practical support to the SADC Hall of Fame.
ARTICLE 16
COPYRIGHT AND NEIGHBOURING RIGHTS
1. Member States shall collaborate in harmonising Copyright and Neighbouring Rights legislation within the Region.
2. Member States shall ensure that international obligations regarding the protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights are honoured.
3. Member States shall endeavour to accede to and ratify international conventions for the protection of Copyright and Neighbouring Rights.
4. Member States undertake to adopt policies and implement measures that will ensure the protection of Intellectual Property Rights within the Community.
5. Member States shall encourage and facilitate the formation of copyright societies or associations in the interest of involving non-governmental stakeholders in matters pertaining to the protection of copyright and intellectual property.
In fulfillment of the principles of this Protocol, Member States agree to cooperate in the area of information in order to attain the following objectives:
(a) Cooperation and collaboration in the promotion, establishment and growth of independent media, as well as free flow of information;
(b) Strengthening Information Departments to be effective gatherers and disseminators of information and news;
(c) Development and promotion of local culture by increasing local content in the media such as magazines, radio, television, video, film and new information technologies;
(d) Taking positive measures to narrow the information gap between the rural and urban areas by increasing the coverage of the mass media, whether private, public or community-based ;
(e) Encouragement of the use of indigenous languages in the mass media as vehicles of promoting local, national and regional inter-communication;
(f) Ensuring the media are adequately sensitised on gender issues so as to promote gender equality and equity in information dissemination.
ARTICLE 18
INFORMATION POLICIES
1. Member States agree to formulate and harmonise information policies after thorough consultations involving appropriate stakeholders and civic society.
2. Member States agree to establish, publicise widely and implement information policies which are in line with the SADC Declaration on the Role of Information in Building the Community.
3. Member States agree to establish and strengthen the institutional framework for the implementation of information policies.
4. Member States agree to create political and economic environment conducive to the growth of pluralistic media.
5. Member States agree to promote specialised training of journalists in the areas of culture and sports to improve the coverage of these.
ARTICLE 19
INFORMATION AVAILABILITY
1. Member States agree to cooperate in improving the free flow of information within the Region.
2. Member States agree to cooperate in capacity building in the creation of data dissemination media and encourage information dissemination and sharing through networking of news agencies in the Region.
3. Member States agree to engage in an extensive publicity campaign of SADC objectives, programmes and projects, activities and achievements.
4. Member States agree to encourage news agencies in the Region to establish a SADC News Agency Pool which, with computerised interconnection, will ensure efficiency and effective exchange of news and information.
5. Member States agree to give more financial and editorial autonomy to the news pool to enhance the professional competence and credibility to media practitioners.
ARTICLE 20
FREEDOM OF THE MEDIA
State Parties shall take necessary measures to ensure the freedom and independence of the media.
State Parties shall encourage the establishment or strengthening of codes of ethics by various sectors of the media through the creation of an enabling environment for the formulation of such frameworks.
State Parties agree to establish a regionally and internationally-recognised SADC Accreditation system or procedure for media practitioners with specific guidelines in order to facilitate the work of such personnel in the rest of the world.
ARTICLE 23
INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE
1. State Parties agree to upgrade media infrastructure for communication in the urban and rural areas to ensure access to more stakeholders through the media.
2. State Parties agree to promote the role of archives, libraries, museums, cultural villages and similar services as information providers.
In fulfillment of the principles of this Protocol, Member States agree to cooperate in the area of Sport in order to attain the following objectives:
(a) Promotion of regional integration through sport and recreation;
(b) Promotion of the participation of key stakeholders in organising and sponsoring sports and recreation programmes and activities;
(c) Promotion and facilitation of the organisation of training programmes for sports personnel;
(d) Promotion of active participation by stakeholders in sport and recreation activities with special emphasis on women, children and people with disabilities;
(e) Fostering the spirit of fair play, mutual respect, ethical and moral principles in sport as well as fighting doping and drugs.
ARTICLE 25
NATIONAL SPORTS AND RECREATION POLICIES
1. Member States agree to cooperate in the development and review of national policies on sports and recreation policies.
2. Member States agree to harmonise policies on sports and recreation.
ARTICLE 26
REGIONAL TOURNAMENTS
State Parties shall collaborate in the organisation of regional tournaments in different sports codes whose modalities and frequency shall be agreed upon.
ARTICLE 27
CENTRES OF TALENT DEVELOPMENT
1. State Parties agree to establish centres of talent development in different sports codes to offer specialised coaching to identified talented young athletes.
2. State Parties agree to provide the necessary resources and facilities for such centres.
ARTICLE 28
CENTRES OF EXCELLENCE IN SPORT
1. State Parties agree to establish Centres of Excellence for different sports discipline whose general objectives shall be to offer specialised training for outstanding athletes.
2. State Parties agree to provide the necessary resources and facilities for such centres.
1. State Parties agree to establish an academy for the training of different sports personnel whose establishment criteria and operational modalities shall be agreed upon.
2. State Parties agree to provide the necessary resources and facilities for such centres.
State Parties shall encourage local industries and the informal sector to manufacture a variety of sports equipment and shall take other policy measures as necessary to stimulate investment in the production of sport equipment.
State Parties agree to establish a sports Honours and Awards scheme for honouring outstanding athletes and personalities.
CHAPTER FOUR
Institutional Arrangement And Financial Provisions
ARTICLE 32
INSTITUTIONAL MECHANISMS
The institutional mechanisms for the implementation of this Protocol shall comprise the Committee of Ministers, Committee of Senior Officials responsible for culture, information and sport, the Sector Co-ordinating Unit, sub-committees in the area of culture, information and sport and Supreme Council for Sport in Africa Zone VI.
